Two wines here from Domaine du Caillou, a leading domaine in the Châteauneuf du Pape appellation. Both are from the 2010 vintage and were bottled very recently, in March 2012.

In terms of style these are definitely for fans of concentration, substance and texture. I find them rather on the warm and voluptuous side for my palate, but they are technically very good wines for sure. I have included prices for cases, in bond, from stockist Bancroft Wines.

The first comes from vines within the Clos du Caillou, but outside the Châteauneuf du Pape appellation as it was laid down in 1936. The fruit is fermented in wooden vats with a 30-day maceration, and délestage (emptying and refilling the vats, a very forceful method of ensuring the cap is mixed with the fermenting wine, enhancing extraction) as well as pigeage.The wine was bottled in March 2012, after 16 months in oak (different vessels for the two varieties featured).

Clos du Caillou Côtes du Rhône Les Quartz 2010: A blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Mourvèdre, picked at 20 hl/ha. A rich and vibrant hue here. Big sweet cherry-liqueur characteristics on the nose, with a layer of rich tones laid over the top, scents of chocolate and smoke surely reflecting some time in oak. There is a garriquey edge to the fruit, but no shortage of solid impact aromatically. There is very voluptuous texture on the start of the palate, and although it is not immediately apparent on second and subsequent tastes there is an undeniable warmth to it here as well. This comes close to dominating the palate with time, but thankfully there is a good cushion of cherry fruit to provide some counterbalance, and there is still some pepper and spice character in the end. Some grip and acid here, but they play second fiddle at best, in what is undoubtedly a ‘hedonistic’ style. Alcohol 14.5%. 14/20 (May 2012) (£135 per case, in bond)

Next up, the Châteauneuf du Pape, handled in much the same way as the Côtes du Rhône, although here 17 months was spent in older wood, 7-11 years old for the Grenache, 2-3 years for the Syrah.

Domaine du Caillou Châteauneuf du Pape Les Quartz 2010: Also a blend of 85% Grenache and 15% Mourvèdre, yield 25 hl/ha, this has a less rich hue than the Côtes du Rhône, less dense, but still showing some vibrant youth. There is a more restrained fruit character here too, albeit overlaid with a very slight hint of toffee, and again a slightly wispy nose that suggests warmth. It tends to suggest the fruit was very ripe and sugar-rich at the time of harvest. This does not show as overtly on the palate as it does in the Côtes du Rhône, but it is undeniably there, although there is also a little more balance and harmony here, more cushion for the structual elemants as well as the alcohol. Definitely more savoury, less primary, but with no let up on power and substance on the palate, backed up by pepper, tannin and spice. From a technical point of view, a very good wine. Alcohol 14.5%. 15/20 (May 2012) (£395 per case, in bond)

Filed under: Rhone
Posted by Chris Kissack on May 10, 2012 at 10:23 am
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Following on from this week’s Wine of the Week, the Pierre Gaillard Asiaticus 2010, here are notes on four more wines from Pierre Gaillard, all from the 2010 vintage.

I liked these wines; they show rather primary varietal characteristics at present, but they also show good harmony on the palate on the whole, with ripe and integrated structures, freshness and style. The Asiaticus was undoubtedly the most striking, but I woudn’t shy away from any of these, especially the Clos Cuminaille which looks like good value to me.

Although only two were marked tiré sur fût looking at the Pierre Gaillard website all his Northern Rhône cuvées spend at least 18 months in barrel so I have assumed all are barrel samples, hence the ranged scores. I have also included prices for cases, in bond, from stockist Bancroft Wines.

Pierre Gaillard St Joseph 2010: A moderate concentration of varietal Syrah fruit on the nose here, showing good character and suggestive of some concentration, but also rather blunted and difficult to define around the edges. A nicely rich substance on the palate though, with a light grip underneath the fruit, showing some biting structure in the midpalate and end. A nice weight to it, with firm and rather punchy acid and a light tannic backbone. Attractive if rather soft and low key at times. 14.5-15.5/20 (April 2012) (£125 per case, in bond)

Pierre Gaillard Saint Joseph Clos Cuminaille 2010: Dark, rich and spicy fruit on the nose here, very classically varietal in some of its tones, especially the blackberry fruit with that typical Syrah vein of sweetness, presented in a soft and slightly diffuse fashion, but certainly identifiable. There is a slightly woody, bracken-like quality to it as well. The palate is soft, gently polished, not especially deeply fruited or rich, the fruit a touch hollow at present, muted by the oak somewhat I think. Where the wine shows its mettle is in the finish, which has better definition than through the midpalate, showing a little grippy tannin and refreshing acidity. Very primary at present, but very harmonious and certainly showing some potential. 16-17/20 (April 2012) (£165 per case, in bond)

Pierre Gaillard Cornas 2010: A darkly coloured wine, concentrated but not opaque, and red-black in terms of hue. The nose is very muted at first but with time it reveals rich fruit aromas reminiscent of blackberry, with such a creamy, sweet intensity that it suggests blackberry purée swirled with vanilla ice cream. And yet alongside this there is a sooty, savoury note which steers the wine away from mere sweetness and simplicity. The palate is full, opening out over an hour or so, with firmly structured fruit and moderately grippy tannins through the middle of the wine, and gentle fresh acidity to the core. The fruit character isn’t quite as well defined as on the nose, but there is some frame to it, and there is certainly some substance to the finish. A wine with some good potential here. 16-17/20 (April 2012) (£260 per case, in bond)

Pierre Gaillard Côte-Rôtie 2010: Great primary fruit character on the nose here, all blackberry with the very typical sweet, buttery, crumble and vanilla ice cream character that comes with young Syrah, and underneath that there is a dark and savoury seam of aromatic, smoky, roasted meats. A good substance in the palate, similarly primary as the nose is, but with a good definition and flesh. Rich, full, more savoury than the aromatics suggested, with a dry and biting finish. Later, this settles down into a really savoury and harmonious balance. A very good style here, with really super potential. 16.5-17.5/20 (April 2012) (£310 per case, in bond)

Filed under: Rhone
Posted by Chris Kissack on April 26, 2012 at 2:09 pm
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I currently have a lot of samples stacked up for tasting, and most of the bottles hail from the Rhône Valley, although Austria, Portugal and New Zealand are all represented.

When I have a large backlog of samples like this it is always tempting to open a dozen or more and just taste through them, especially when I have a busy period coming up (Bordeaux 2011 – my trip next week, plus all the writing up that will be required immediately on my return). But I resent doing this, because this turns an opportunity for a more thorough examination of the wine, taking my time over it, taking a second pour as required, into nothing better than a slurp’n'spit tasting. What’s the point of a busy winemaker in the Douro or Kamptal sending me a pile of bottles if that’s all I’m going to do?

What I’ve been doing instead is comparing and contrasting, blind tasting two bottles at a time, so that I get something out of the bottles (some useful palate education), but they get something out of me (some focused time). And because my family have been joining in the tasting and assessments (and I’m blown away by the tasting ability of all my three offspring, but my daughter especially – she wipes the floor with her two brothers) I’ve tried to pick out some easy contrasts. Here are the most recent two:

A 2010 Côte-Rôtie vs. 2010 Châteauneuf du Pape (both barrel samples)
This was meant to be easy, and it was. The only possible confusion might have come from the very primary nature of the fruit in both wines, but as both seemed true to (a) the varieties involved and (b) the climate the differentiation didn’t challenge anybody. My three teenagers don’t know their Rôtie from their Pape (yet) but once I gave some hints at which flavours (there was a classically sweet, brown-sugar crumble edge to the Syrah blackberry vs. the roasted-cherry Grenache) and texture (much more viscous in the warmer climate wine) then the wines were identified.

A 2010 Condrieu vs. 2010 Châteauneuf du Pape Blanc
Well, here is a pair that demonstrates the humbling effect of blind tasting; I hoped this would be another very easy comparison, but it was not, and indeed I backtracked on my first impressions. The textures were very similar, the acidities low, the aromas and flavours both reticent, at first at least. The Condrieu showed a lick of alcohol that made me think of the south, whereas the Châteauneuf showed a peachy character at first, which made me think of Viognier. But with a little time in the glass the Condrieu opened out to reveal certain aromatic Viognier characteristics, and the Châteauneuf hunkered down into a savage, savoury, rather wild character. I switched around, and got it right. My daughter, of course, once given some hints on Viognier aromas and flavours, spotted it without a hitch.

So this is fun, but also constructive and instructive, on several levels. Not only do I remind myself of the need to be analytical and precise when tasting (which blind tasting encourages I think), I also continue to show my children alcohol as something akin to music, art, theatre, film or whatever, to be enjoyed, mused over, investigated, discussed and respected, rather than as fuel for a binge-derived ‘high’. In each case we have tasted along with dinner, not a role for alcohol I was introduced to as a younger man. Will this mean their teenage years see different interactions with alcohol to those I ‘enjoyed’, one or two of which were very negative indeed? Who knows? I hope so.

The growers were Pierre Gaillard, La Ferme du Mont, François Villard and Domaine de Cristia by the way. Obviously I will write up all the wines as soon as possible, somewhere in the midst of a huge Bordeaux 2011 I suppose!

Filed under: Opinion, Rhone
Posted by Chris Kissack on March 29, 2012 at 2:37 pm
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